The Weasel and the Deer

1. Golden

AN: Hello! It has been a long time since I've posted here and I hope everyone is staying safe out there. Drink plenty of water and wear your masks, okay?

This is my first time writing about Naruto but I've been reading Naruto fanfics for years now and I've always wanted to write one as well. So please be nice to me hehe. Constructive criticism is accepted. It's also been a long since I last watched the series but because of quarantine and stuff, I was able to rewatch it alongside my postgrad studies haha! And I've come to realize how much I love these two!

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters, okay. And this chapter was based on the episodes in the series so yeah.

Anyhow. This will be a series of one-shots because I'm a sucker for one-shots and I hope you guys enjoy it!

Golden

It was such a drag, really.

Troublesome.

It was bad enough that he had to fight that girl from Sound during the preliminary exam. But now, he had to fight that blonde girl with the four pigtails from Sand. He's seen what the Sound girl could do, back in the second stage of the chunin exam, but the Sand girl was a whole other thing.

One look at her, and he knew she'd be a hard opponent. There was an edge to her that exudes confidence and power, add to that the gigantic fan strapped to her back ready to pummel anyone who dared mess with her. And given that she was from Sand, he just knew she was a tough kunoichi. Doesn't really matter if her blonde hair is so much different from Ino's or any of the girls in Konoha, or how weird it was styled in those four spiky pigtails, or how it shines like gold when the sun strikes it. Just like now.

Tch. How come he's the only one who had to fight girls anyway? They're too troublesome.

On top of that, Naruto just had to push him off the railing and into the arena. What an entrance.

Shikamaru glared at the sky as he hid behind a tree. In the distance, Temari held onto her tessen, ready to strike again. Both of them were panting, with scratches all over their faces and bodies.

He closed his eyes and concentrated. His mind was whirling with different strategies to survive the walking whirlwind in front of him.

One.

Two.

Three.

Shikamaru took a deep breath and opened his eyes. Got it!

Everything happened so fast then. One minute they're chasing each other around the arena, and then the next, they're standing face to face. Her face turned from shock to scared in a matter of seconds.

He could see it in her eyes, she couldn't believe he had defeated her and she was terrified of what would happen to her now. Shikamaru slowly raised his hand, making her do the same. Her eyes closed, too scared to see with her own eyes as the proctor announces the official winner of the match.

He did have a few chakra left, but he knew full well it wasn't enough to survive another match. And may be that was the reason he said the words that made her gasp and look at him, surprised.

"What did you say?" Temari asked, her voice shaking.

Shikamaru released his jutsu and shrugged his shoulders.
"I give up."

And as the proctor announced her name, Shikamaru told himself that he really didn't have enough chakra left. He'd be easily crushed by the other guys. It wasn't because he thought her hair was pretty up close, or that she looked pretty cute with those blonde strands framing her face.

It wasn't any of those. It was really just too troublesome.
_____

What was it with him and Sound girls trying to kill each other?

He gritted his teeth, trying to hold back the weird flute girl who's just dying to kill him. He's really close to giving up.

And this time, he really did not have enough chakra. Not even enough to perform another jutsu. This was it for him.

He never thought his first ever chunin mission would end this way. Tch, troublesome woman and troublesome Sasuke.

The flute girl was saying something but he was too busy thinking of ways to somehow survive when out of nowhere, a strong wind blew her away. Thus saving him from death.

He looked around and was shocked to see HER land on the tree branch in front of him.

She looked the same but different at the same time.

She was wearing a short light purple kimono with a red sash tied at the waist and she looked taller.

But her hair was still in the same weird updo and it wasn't just blonde. It was golden.

"Who are you?" The flute girl asked, hanging on a tree branch for dear life.

"I'm an ally of the leaf."

Shikamaru smirked as he thought of how things have changed. Just last year, she had helped in the attack on Konoha and now, she's here saving his ass from another girl.

Troublesome.
He couldn't let a woman protect him, it should be the other way around.

He immediately told her about the enemy, making sure to mention the strengths of the sound shinobi.

"Ah, but don't underestimate my abilities."
And with just one sweep of her gigantic fan, a strong wind blew all around them, trees were cut down and there, among the rubble laid the flute girl.

It was over.
Just like that.

Shikamaru stared at her in shock.
'She's scarrier than my mom.'

And when she turned back to face him, her lips pulled in that childish smile and the sunlight shining from behind her. He couldn't help but admire her golden tresses, making her glow as if she was the sun herself.

_____

He jumped from tree to tree, Ino rushing behind him.

He didn't want to think about it at first, but now as he rushed to where the fighting was, he just hoped he'll get there on time.

He had no idea just how strong their enemies were but if those sand siblings were having a hard time and needed their help, then those guys would be pretty strong.

He's seen how Temari and her brothers fought before and they're all very powerful, and dare he say, terrifying.

So now, he wasn't feeling pretty good about all this.

He picked up his speed and just as he arrived, he heard Temari scream and crash into a tree, knocking her unconscious.

Shikamaru cursed under his breath and crouched down to perform his jutsu. He had to reach her. He just had to make it work.

As the enemy released another powerful strike towards Temari, he successfully catches her and maneuvered her to avoid the attack.

He stared at her back, hoping she'll wake up soon. And she did and she knew immediately what had happened as she stared back at him in shock.

"A man should always repay the debt he owes a woman."
He had told her when she asked why he was there.

They worked as a team then, luring their enemy closer to the waterfall to make his jutsu work. And after a few more scratches and near misses, they succeeded in throwing her into the water.

And as it showered above them, she turned back to him with that childlike smile, the water making her hair darker and with the sun shining in the sky, he still thought her hair looked golden.

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AN: I may or may not be inspired by Harry Styles' music video for Golden when I was writing this one haha! Thank you so much for reading! Stay tuned for the next chapter! Bye!